


"So-A Dog, A Werewolf, and the Boy Who Lived Walk Into a Bar..."

by DragontheDragon



Category: Harry Potter - Fandom
Genre: Harry Potter - Freeform, Multi, The Marauders - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-23
Updated: 2015-02-27
Packaged: 2018-03-14 19:54:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3423557
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragontheDragon/pseuds/DragontheDragon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Inspired by this post: http://isozyme.tumblr.com/post/111212878034/remus-lupin-sirius-you-did-what-inspired-by</p>
<p>Sirius Black had expected to hang out with his best friend and watch muggle horror movies, but instead he discovers a destroyed home and a screaming baby in the arms of one Rubeus Hagrid.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sirius- Halloween Night, 1981

The night was chilly against his skin as he flew, the motor of the charmed motorcycle rumbling underneath him. The young man had a crooked smile on his face, telling more than it perhaps should of. It was a school boy's smile, the gleam in his eyes full of mischief. Not even the dark circles under them dulled their glow. It was Halloween night, and below he could see the last of the trick-or-treaters. The wizard laughed to himself at the thought of their costumes. He'd seen a little girl no more than six dressed up like a "witch". The idea of wearing costumes for Halloween had always amused him. Maybe one day, when this war was over, the wizard mused, he could take Harry out. Surely Lily and James wouldn't have a problem with that, as long as they obtained their bounty of candy in the appropriate way, and not in the more fun way( see: the way that involved magic).

The motorbike slowed and began it's descent. Its rider was not much more than twenty-one, and his name was Sirius Black. He did not notice, not at first, that there was anything wrong. He wasn't paying attention, his thoughts far away, imaging adorable costumes he could put his godson in and thinking about how much fun he was going to make his friend's have. It was Halloween, and the couple had been in hiding. The Marauder was just the person that they needed on a night like tonight, and Sirius was more than happy to cheer up his friends.

But tonight was not going to be a night of fun and games. That was apparent the second Padfoot took his eyes from the sky and looked at the Potter's house. His heart stopped in his chest. When it restarted, it pounded, working twice as hard as it ever had before. Suddenly the motorcycle's rider was terrified, shaking in the leather jacket that the man had donned so enthusiastically only an hour before. What had happened here?

The bike landed on asphalt and the engine was cut in a hurry as Sirius scrambled off of his seat and lurched forward, towards the ruins of the house that had been so carefully concealed. So carefully protected and guarded! Spells and charms had been placed on the thing, all in order to keep James, Lily, and their baby safe. Especially their baby. Now it was half rubble, and the part that was still house-shaped looked as if it might crumble if so much as a breeze hit it. Obviously, his friends couldn't have been inside. Obviously this was some kind of joke that James was trying to pull. It was an awfully unfunny one, but it wouldn't be the first time a prank between the two had gone way too far. It was probably an illusion. After all, Halloween was supposed to be scary!If the intent was to scare him, than James could consider his pants sufficiently shat. 

There was no way this was actually happening, and the young man would refuse to believe anything else until-

Until he noticed the abnormally large man that stepped out of the rubble. Hagrid. The friendly giant, keeper of keys and grounds at Hogwarts and a fellow member of the Order of the Phoniex. A small boy wailed in the man's large arms. Harry! But.." Hagrid! What's going on?? Where are James and Lily??" Sirius was sure.. sure this was just a game. Hagrid was just here for some other reason, surely not because Dumbledore had sent him- surely not! Why would Dumbledore do that for a prank?... Why would Hagrid emerge from the rubble holding Padfoots crying godson for a prank?

The look on Hagrid's face was enough to tell it all. The half-giant was crying almost as much as the infant in his arms, although much more quietly. This was.. real. James and Lily..  
They were gone. There was no other explanation. They would be holding Harry now if that wasn't the case. He didn't need to ask what had happened, because he already knew. Peter had happened. Peter had betrayed them! Their best friends! They'd been sold out by that little rat to You-Know-Who. That was the only way the monster of a wizard could have found the house! That was the only way he would have been able to enter their home and..

He didn't have time to wonder how Harry had survived. He held his hands out to the older man for the toddler. " I can take him.I'm his godfather!" The words fell out of his mouth without a second thought. Of course he would take the kid. Sirius loved Harry to death, and the baby's parents had WANTED him to take care of their kid if anything were to happen to them. That meant a lot, considering they were in the middle of a goddamn fucking war!

"No..I-I'm sorry but he's gotta go to Lily's sister Sirius. Dumbledore's orders." Of course. Hagrid practically worshiped the man, of course he would follow his orders. There was no reason not to, the wizard was old and wise, not to mention the leader of the Order in the first place. But Sirius had never been good at following orders. He'd made it a habit in school to break the rules he didn't like, and home too. The consequences had always been worth the reward. 

"Fuck Dumbledore! I'm his guardian, hand the kid over Hagrid!" He reached into his pocket and whipped out is wand, pointing it threateningly at the large man holding the still screaming Harry. Sirius could see blood on the little guy, and it only fueled all of the anger that was raging inside him. At the death of his friends, at Peter's betrayal, and at Dumbledore( and by extension, at Hagrid). "Give him to me! Please don't make me do this!"

"I can't." The poor giant said. He was defenseless against Padfoot. Any other day that would have been enough to make Sirius realize what he was doing and lower his wand. But the night, he was angry and confused. All he knew was that he couldn't let James Potter's son go to some woman that he'd never met before. Harry belonged with him, with people he knew and loved him! "Sirius-"

"Stupefy!" The spell hit Hagrid right in the face, and he fell to the ground with a thud. Realizing what he'd done, Sirius swore to himself, wiping tears out of his eyes and walking over to where the giant had fallen. There was his godson. Even all tiny and squishy, he looked so much like his father. The boy sat up, looking at Sirius. Harry probably understood even less than the man did, young, half asleep and very scared. " come'ere kid, let's get you out of here." He mumbled quietly, not wanting to scare his best friend's kid. Holding the infant in his arms, he wiped the blood away from his forehead. Some sort of cut was there, and the child's godfather had a sinking feeling that it could only have been caused by dark magic. Was He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named still around here, lurking in the shadows? What exactly had happened, and how had this little guy, the one that the dark wizard had wanted so badly to kill, survived it?

That, the Marauder, down two friends, betrayed by another, and possibly out of a job, did not know. What he did know was that Dumbledore was going to be furious with him. The entire order would be looking for him eventually- but he had a good two hours before anyone found out. Harry nuzzled into the crook of Sirius' arm,looking as tired as the man felt. He was going to keep this kid safe, that he swore to himself. Even if it meant kidnapping him and going on the run.

\--

 

Driving a flying motorcycle with a sleeping toddler in his arms was no easy task. It was, certainly, an unnerving one. One false move and Sirius could drop the newly orphaned boy down far below. It was a thought that made him more careful than he had ever been before. He'd practically signed the death warrant for James and Lily Potter- he would not be the death of their son as well.

Letting Wormtail be the secret keeper had been the most idiotic idea. Sure, no one suspected him out of their friends to be it, but they could have gone with Remus, or one of the Longbottoms- Peter Petigrew had always been a coward. Sirius couldn't believe  
he'd ever called such a man his friend! How could he do that? If it wasn't for the baby sitting precariously in his arms, the scraggly Gryffindor would have hunted the slimeball down and ended his life right then and there. He itched to do it. The anger ate away at him as he watched the land below pass by. There was nothing more dangerous than the anger of a grieving man, and, perhaps, there was nothing that could nullify it's effects like a sleeping child in that man's arms.

Sirius looked down at Harry, trying not to let any of the tears streaming down his face land on him. He was too young to have a dead father, and his father was far too young to be a dead one. What was he going to do? He couldn't go home unless he wanted the order to turn up on his doorstep and take the infant away. So where did they go? Not somewhere public, nowhere that someone would think to look for him. He'd stop by his house, grab the essentials, attach the side car so he'd be less likely to  
accidentally kill the toddler, and they'd stay in a muggle hotel for a few days until this could all be figured out.

God, he didn't want to figure out this mess on his own. He'd always had James there to help hold things together. When Sirius tripped, there was Potter to catch him, and vice versa. When they had gotten themselves into trouble, there was no one else either would have wanted to turn to. But this time.. this time there was no James to turn to. No Lily to smack some sense into the two of them. Just.. just this kid. Just this little baby in his arms, the product of two amazing people, with a cut in the shape of a lightning bolt that would surely leave a scar. How could he possibly hope to take care of Harry AND this mess all by himself? He wondered as he landed his motorcycle gently in front of his home.

For a moment Padfoot could do nothing but hold the infant tightly in his arms and try not to cry. He had to be brave. He had to be brave for Harry, and for his parents. He had to keep himself together until they were safe. He slowly pulled himself of the bike and the two wizards entered the household, one asleep, the other wanting for all the world to join him. Any energy he might have had was gone now. Not even his anger could make him want to be awake in a world where greatest of people could just.. die. Just die like that, with the flip of a switch. But sleep was a luxury that, at the moment, the young man could not afford. Gently, he placed the child in his arms down on his couch, and hurried around his home. The small apartment was a mess. Clothes were flung in random places, ripped books and stray pieces of parchment laid on the floor, with nary a hope of ever being picked up by their owner. In the corner was a guitar, long since over due to be played. By the couch there sat a stack of Daily Prophets. Sirius rarely did much of anything here but sleep and occasionally laze about. His life existed out in the world. With the Order,and with his friends.

He walked over to the guitar, running a hand over it. Tears ran faster down his face as he remembered the day his best friend had given it to him. A christmas spent at the Potter household in his sixth year. It had been a happy day. The two of them had been idiots back then. They still were idiots but.. now they were responsible idiots. Idiots who had been fighting a war for too long. A duo with only one half left . Sirius turned away from it. He couldn't think about James right now. That could wait. Taking care of these things could not.

He grabbed his old trunk from his days at Hogwarts out of the closet and quickly began to pack. Clothes were thrown in hastily. A few books. A jacket, some things that he thought Harry might need. He nearly threw in his wallet before realizing that it might better serve its purpose in his pocket. Sirius looked around the apartment some more, checking on the sleeping baby on his couch every so often. Sirius caught himself walking around the apartment in one giant circle, and he stopped. He  
stood there, in front of his guitar, staring for a moment. The Marauder wiped his eyes and carefully added the instrument to  
the contents of the trunk. There. He was done.

Giving a glance to Harry, he slipped out to his bike and attached the sidecar. It was entirely unsafe for children to ride in. Lily and James would have wrung his neck if they knew he intended to put their son in that thing. Sirius didn't want to, but he didn't have a car. This was the only alternative that even remotely safe for a kid his godson's age. He went back inside. With a wave of his wand, he shrunk the trunk down and put it in his pocket next to his wallet. He picked up the baby he had so unexpectedly become guardian too, and almost left for good.

Almost, that was, until he remembered the owl. He would have completely forgotten the bird if it hadn't decided to let out a rather irritated screech at him. He paused, baby in his arms, before making his way to his bedroom and releasing Black Sabbath from it's cage. " Sorry about that buddy. Can't believe I almost forgot about you." He said, half-heartedly. Should he release his bird into the night? Or..Should he send a letter?

Sirius opted for the latter, scrambling to find a quill and anything that he could right on. He scrawled out a quick note, and addressed it to the only person in the world he thought he could trust. Remus Lupin. He rolled it and tied to the owl's foot as he let of a screech of protest. " Shh- you'll wake up Harry!" He whispered harshly to bird, bringing her to the window. She was a beautiful thing in the moonlight, all large and silvery, with the bright eyes that seemed far too intelligent. Sirius was really fond of her, and he stroked her  
feathers, before gently opening the window. She flew off, and he watched for a moment, wondering if Moony would help or.. they all thought he was the secret keeper. Fuck! They all thought he was the secret keeper, they thought that.. that.. that he.. they would think that HE had betrayed them, not Peter, not the little rat of a man, that vile human being who deserved to die whatever gorey death was sure to come to a man who could betray his closet friends like that. They were going to think that he had backstabbed James and Lily, and then kidnapped their son.

Would Remus listen to him? Would his fellow marauder allow him to offer an explanation, or come to the same conclusion that Sirius was sure now they would all come to. Either way, it was too late now. The letter had been sent, and now it was all up to fate.

\------------

Moony,  
I'm sure you'll know about everything by the time you get this letter. I have Harry and I need your help. Please, I can't do this on my own. Meet me you know where. Two Days. Noon. Will explain then.

DON'T TELL THE ORDER

-Padfoot

\------------

Sirius drove on the muggle roads, too afraid to fly with Harry again. He drove on, not sure where specifically he was going, only knowing that it needed to at least be somewhat near the place he'd instructed Remus to meet him. His eyes felt heavy as the night wore on into the early hours of the morning. He found himself almost jealous of his sleeping godchild's peaceful slumber. The boy didn't know that his parents were gone. He was far too young to have understood that. It was take years, the tired ex-Marauder thought, before the kid really understood what had happened. Even then, he might not understand all of it. Sirius certainly didn't.

The sun was just beginning to rise in the sky when Padfoot realized that it simply wasn't safe for him to keep driving. He'd nearly fallen asleep twice. That was not something he could do, not when he had the child of James and Lily Potter as a passenger. Sirius would much rather die than let any harm fall on the one year old, especially now. Protecting the little boy was his only chance to make up for his horrible mistake. To make up for suggesting Wormtail as their secret keeper. The infant deserved to rest somewhere safer and warmer than the sidecar of an enchanted motorcycle.

He located the nearest hotel, parked his bike, and carefully cradled Harry in his arms. The cut on the boy's forehead was still there. He wanted to strangle the man who'd given it to him, the man who'd killed his parents- or at the very least, the coward that had tipped off the murderer in the first place. Sirius would make Peter pay. 

But first, it was the weary traveler who would have to pay. Pay for a room. The woman at the front desk eyed him, dirty and ragged, trying to pay for a hotel room in the middle of the night with a sleeping toddler in his arms. It was probably an odd sight to see for the Muggle, but Sirius could care less about how he appeared to her, as long as she gave him a room. And she did. 

The room was small and not exactly very classy, but to Padfoot it looked like heaven. He set the last of the Potters down on  
the bed, and crawled onto it next to him, not even bothering to kick off his shoes. He felt as if the entire world had crumbled into rubble on top of him, and he was desperately trying to claw his way back up to the surface. Sirius was more exhausted than he'd ever been in his life. The moment his head hit the pillow underneath him, and his squeezed shut, he was asleep, with no time even to dwell on everything had happened, or to process the grief that welled up inside him like a big balloon. For now, those things could wait, as he drifted off to sleep, his arm draped protectively over the sleeping son of James Potter.


	2. Remus-Halloween Night, 1981

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus receives some very bad news

The sky was clear and bright that night. The stars twinkled overhead like Christmas lights, beautiful celestial bodies that were incredible to behold. Those stars were further away from the earth than any person would probably ever be. However, despite it's beauty, there was one thing in the sky that was not magnificent to Remus Lupin, and that was the moon. Though it wouldn't be full for eleven more days, the mere sight of it was enough to make him uncomfortable.The man stood up on a hill, grass blowing in the wind. It was bitterly cold, but he did not seem to care as he looked towards the sky. Standing there in the moon light, it was clear that this was a tired man. His face, pale and scarred, was already beginning to line, despite the fact that he was no more than twenty-one. He was a very thin man, Remus, and his clothes never quite seemed to fit him right. His fingers twitched as he looked to the sky. He had.. a bad feeling about that night. There was no cause for it, of course, but there was no shortage of bad feelings when one was fighting a war. Especially when one's best friends believed him to be a traitor.

Why they had come to that conclusion was a.. long and difficult story. What mattered was that they had, and none of them had spoken much to him since. Moony, as they had once affectionately called him, was completely out of the loop with the only people that mattered in his life. He didn't blame them. There were so many things that the Marauders and Lily could choose from if they wanted to hate him. Remus wasn't a traitor, but there were so many other reasons for them to dislike him that it hardly mattered /why/ they did.

After far too long looking at the sky, the werewolf turned his eyes away. He was here on important business with the Order. This was no time to dwell on unfounded feelings of unease.

 

Down below, at the base of the hill, Remus could see campfires burning their bright image into the night. He had been living among others of his.. kind, for last few months. It had initially been a mission he was hesitant to take, but after they'd all decided not to trust him, he'd been grateful that Dumbledore had offered him a job where he wouldn't have to force himself upon those who did not want him around. Still, it was odd to be around others who suffered from the same issue. The group was an odd mix of those who embraced their identity too much, and those afraid of who they were. Both groups were very different. Those who embraced their identity wanted to run wild and free, without a care for others. Remus suspected that they were more wolf than human now. Their morals had been beaten and weathered. He suspected they would easily follow He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named if he offered the right prize in return. Those who were afraid, who hated themselves, were much more like the former prefect, but they too would be easily persuaded to the dark arts if that side promised a cure to their affliction.

The wizard made his way down the hill slowly, light colored hair blown away from his face by a cold burst of wind. He neared the camp, could nearly make out faces that had grown familiar to him. These people were somewhat like a family, and though Remus knew he was an outsider, they were still kind to him. It was more than his friends had given him lately. He was still unsure that James' offer to support him financially was still being followed through. He didn't have much of a need for money, and couldn't really receive owls while he was out here, so who knew. He hoped that Prongs hadn't yet decided he was entirely untrustworthy.About to step into the camp, Remus was suddenly stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

 

His entire body stiffened in an instant, and he stood there,frozen for a moment. Remus was not the biggest fan of physical contact, and certainly not when he was caught by surprise like this. From behind him, the owner of the hand spoke. "Remus," a woman's voice said, soft, but slightly scratchy, "the oven is hot".Turning, Moony found himself facing a witch not much older than himself. Emmeline Vance, a talented witch and member of the Order. Unfortunately, her appearance did not calm him. Far from it. The appearance of an Order member so unexpectantly was never good news.

The look on the woman's face seemed particularly grim, and Remus could only hope that something horrible had not happened. "but the sandwich was never made."He said in reply. It was not a code that either of them had chosen. The Order suspected that Dumbledore had been hungry when he made up many of their codes and passwords. They more often than not had to do with food.

With confirmation that he was not under the Imperious Curse,Emmeline quietly gestured for him to follow her. Curious, and a bit afraid, he followed. The witch lead him away from the camp, over the hill and a bit farther away. She glanced around, then looked at Remus as if she felt bad for him. Like she did not want to be the one to deliver the message. "What is it?" He asked, worried. His fingers twitched at his side. Her face did not reveal anything, and she did not respond. She very much did not want to tell him. " Emmeline, please, whats going on?" Urged Remus, unsure he really wanted to know.

"You-Know-Who has been defeated." The woman blurted out, her bright blue eyes not meeting his green ones. He stumbled backward a little in surprise.

" What- are you sure?" Remus asked. Why did she seem so somber about this? This was great news! Without that horrible bastard in the world, the war was over, surely! There would be no more senseless killing, fear and panic around every corner, worming its way into every crevice of daily life. They'd all be free to relax- to celebrate! He received a rather half-hearted nod as confirmation. " This is great news!!" The dirty blonde exclaimed, a rare smile spreading across his features.

"There's more to it than that." Emmeline said, looking sorry to cut short his joy. "Remus, perhaps you should sit down." She gestured towards a nearby tree stump. His smile slowly faded, and his sat down as she suggested. Something this big, this great- what on earth could possibly dull its effects on the world?

"How.. exactly was he defeated?Who-"

"Harry Potter." Ms. Vance was entirely serious. Her face was the epitome of serious. There had never been a more gravely serious face than the face that Emmeline wore for him in that moment. But it made no sense! James Potter's son? James and Lily's /one year old/ son? How could an infant possibly defeat the most powerful dark wizard the world had ever known?

" You're kidding me."

"No.. unfortunately I'm not. It's a long story, and one I do not think you will enjoy..." She seemed to be hoping he wouldn't want to know the details. But on matters of the Potters, Remus had been left in the dark for far too long.

" Please tell me Emmeline- how did that little boy possibly end He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named?" His voice was gentle. She was clearly reluctant to tell him, and perhaps even a bit upset herself by whatever news she harbored inside her. He needed to know, so he needed to make it easier for her to tell him.

The woman stared dismally at the lines of her palm, inspecting her hand as she spoke. " Months ago,Dumbledore was given a prophecy- that either Harry Potter or Neville Longbottom would be the downfall of You-Know-Who. You were not told.. at the time we had reason to suspect you were not trustworthy. Somehow He learned of this prophecy and chose to go after the Potters. They went into hiding. Their Secret Keeper..." She paused, eyes growing misty as she intently examined her hand. "... Their Secret Keeper was Sirius Black. Only he could have revealed their location to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.."

Again, the witch paused, eyes flitting to Remus, who was trying to make sense of what she was saying. She quickly continued before he could ask any questions." A few hours ago, he found and.. murdered Lily and James." She struggled to keep tears away, voice seconds from breaking. " But- But Harry.. He tried to kill that little boy. He tried to use the killing curse on him, but for some reason.. it didn't work. It backfired. He's.. vanished you see. Its likely he may be dead. And the child- he's been kidnapped. By his godfather."

Remus Lupin looked at the women, who he had never known to tell a lie, and wished that she was unworthy of his trust. The bit about Harry's kidnapping flew straight over the wizard's head. James and Lily dead? He didn't want to believe it. Two of his dearest friends..

It was a good thing Emmeline had asked him to sit down, but it the stump was not enough support to keep the willowy figure of Moony from falling to the ground. For a moment he sat there on his knees, fingernails digging into the dirt. He felt like he couldn't breathe. The world was spinning around him. His sides ached, and he let out a low, dry sob. Then another. It was an act of pure,painful mourning, with not a tear in his eyes. This was a pain that, for Lupin, went beyond tears. Went beyond anything that he'd ever known before. He wanted to scream, but no sound would come out of his mouth but his sobs. He punched the ground hard, shaking. How could the world continue exist without Lily and James on it?

Lily had been like a sister to him. They'd become friends at Hogwarts long before she began to tolerate James. She had been so bright. Teachers had adored her, and Remus, too, had adored her. She was kind, and caring, but not afraid to tell the Marauders off, something not even he had been able to do back then. She'd been the first person he'd ever willingly and directly told about his.. "furry little problem". She had truly been a gift to the world.

Now she was gone. Stolen away by a man who knew nothing of friendship, or love, or kindness.

Stolen too was her husband James. There had never been anyone quite like that boy. A troublemaker, brave as could be, thought himself to be hilarious, though Remus had often thought otherwise. At heart, James Potter had been a very kind man, though in school he had sometimes been cruel. It had been Potter that had brought the Marauders together, made them who they were. It was him who figured out why Remus disappeared once a month, and it him who had put all his effort into becoming an Animagus simply so that Moony would not be alone on full moons. That gesture had won the loyalty of the werewolf in a way that not even Dumbledore had.

Without James Potter.. without Prongs.. it felt like someone had punched a large whole in his chest. a James shaped hole,the shape of round glasses and messy hair, a grin that had shouted " up to no good" from a mile away. It had drawn in Peter, Sirius, and him, like nothing else could of. And now..Remus paused, somehow managing to look up at Emmeline.She'd seated herself down next to him, crying to herself. She'd known the two order members, but no where near as intimately as Lupin had. "Padf- Sirius." He breathed, voice barely audible. "Sirius Black. He was their Secret Keeper?"

Vance nodded. " He betrayed them?" She nodded again. His throat went dry, and he stared at her for a moment, processing this. Sirius would never- Padfoot worshiped the ground James walked on, the two were practically inseparable, brothers not by blood but by nature. Sirius owed so much to Prongs, how could he.. how could he do that? After being disowned by the Blacks, why would he ever betray the only real family he'd ever known to the very side his "family" would undoubtedly follow to their shallow graves??

Remus couldn't fathom a reality where this was the truth- but it must have been. And why, dear Merlin- why had he kidnapped Harry?  
\--

Time passed by in the way that time tends to do, hours slipping away, gone, never to be relived. Hours that took him farther away from a time when James and Lily were alive and well, Remus thought, looking at his watch. The two order members had sat there for hours, talking. Mourning. If it hadn't been for the time, the two may have continued on that way for eternity. But Vance had duties to attend to, as did Lupin, and so he trudged his way wearily up the hill and into camp, looking more ghost than man.

He found his way to his tent and pressed his head against the soft surface of his pillow, but try as he might, no slumber would come to him. The werewolf's thoughts were too busy spinning like mad. A haze of regret and sorrow, but also confusion. He wanted to do and say so many things, but now it was too late. He wanted to know what was happening with Padfoot, how Peter was handling the news and, most of all,Remus wanted to close his eyes. He wished to find himself back before the world became such a dark place. Back at Hogwarts, back to being a prefect, to being with his best friends. To studying with Lily and laughing with Prongs and Sirius. Playing wizards chess with Peter, cheering Gryffindor on in Quidditch matches.. He missed it all so much. Roaming the castle at night, and the forest on full moons when the Marauders had somehow managed to help him think clearly despite his lyncanthropy.

Those days had been gone for years. He'd thought they'd been gone for good with his friends began to grow distant, but even then, Remus must have held on to some small sliver of hope that things would get better. That they'd forget that they were friends with a monster and claim to see the man in the beast once again. Now, with the Potters gone and Sirius' betrayal, there was no chance in the world for them to ever be whole again.

Like a skeleton's bones, he felt rattled. No amount of tossing and turning would make him feel right again. Perhaps he would never feel right again. He didn't like to think like that- it had always been Padfoot's job to be the drama queen- but it was unavoidable. The world had come crashing down around him. Forgive him for being a bit dramatic about the whole experience.

There was a sudden and very loud SQUAWK from outside his tent. Startled, the wizard tumbled off of his cot and onto the hard floor below, tangled in his blanket ( the tents were of the muggle variety, unfortunately). When he did come out at once, the SQUAWK was followed in rapid succession by various other bird noises, loud and sounding slightly annoyed. Remus detangled himself in a rush and stumbled to the door of his tent. sitting perched on a table was a large grey owl with eyes that looked like they could see right through you. It was not the sort of bird one forgot, and indeed, Lupin had not. The owl belonged to none other than the traitor himself- Sirius Black.

She held a rolled up bit of parchment in her beak, addressed plainly to "Moony". Remus, unsure of what the message would contain, did his best to keep from jumping to conclusions, and did his best to keep from feeling angry at his friend.Perhaps the dog would offer some sort of explanation for his actions, because the young man did not want to believe that one of his closest friends could ever betray James. Especially not Sirius.

Taking the letter from Black Sabbath, he unrolled the parchment carefully. He read it over once. Then twice. The message gave him more questions than answers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> posting this early, but after spring break,i will start posting on Mondays. Hope you enjoy!

**Author's Note:**

> this is my first time writing fanfiction, so i hope you all enjoy!


End file.
